Introduction
Cuba has been called the world’s largest open-air antique car museum. To anyone who visits Cuba, it is all but impos­sible to miss the pre-1960s American-made cars that daily ply the roads (Figure 1). The vintage cars from such manufacturing giants as Ford, Chevrolet, Oldsmobile, and Chrysler as well as long-forgotten DeSotos, Nashs, Packards, Studebakers, and Edsels are ubiquitous on Cuban roads, especially in Havana. As the volume of international tourists (especially from the U.S.) increases, and articles in the popular press about the Island become more prevalent, awareness of this fleet of old American cars continues to grow. But few visitors understand the lengths to which Cubans go to keep these classic cars running. What is the cultural message carried in some of Detroit’s most extravagant creations? What explains the extraordinary efforts to keep the cacharros (jalopies) running? The purpose of this article is to identify some of the forces behind the…